Read time: 4 min.

A few weeks back, someone asked if I knew anything about the rundown building that sits at the corner of Lindberg and Nursery Roads in northeast Anderson- the one everyone seems to think is an eyesore. Do I know something? Absolutely! From 1929 to 1982, the place was known as Lindbergh, then Lindberg, Elementary School.

The early history of Anderson Township’s educational institutions outside of Anderson itself is muddled. Most sources focus on schools that were established within the city’s expanding limits. By 1874, though, the township was home to fourteen schoolhouses¹. Five of them were brick.

The predecessor to the Lindberg School was known as Toll Gate. Built in 1879², the institution served students in District 2, then later, District 9. In 1929, a larger building replaced the old Toll Gate and Chestnut Grove schoolhouses. 140 pupils rushed to attend classes there³. 

The new school took the name Lindbergh, in honor of the famous aviator who had just completed the first nonstop solo flight across the Atlantic. Before long, the old Toll Gate Road it sat on was also renamed Lindbergh⁴. However, both the school and the road quietly dropped the “H” from his name once Charles Lindbergh’s antiwar views came to light⁵. It was a subtle shift, but one with an interesting story behind it.

In 1961, the Lindberg School received an $85,000⁶ addition to the north that expanded its classes and included a multipurpose room. Another Anderson Township school, Twenty-Fifth Street, received a five-room addition as part of the same capital project⁷. 

Unfortunately, declining enrollment and rising costs led Anderson Community Schools to close Lindberg, Brentwood, Longfellow, Riley, Roosevelt, and Washington Elementary Schools⁸ in 1982⁹. By the following year, Lindberg, Park Manor, Riley, Roosevelt, and Washington, were deaccessioned by the school board¹⁰. The sales marked the end of an era for many of Anderson’s neighborhood institutions.

In 1985, the old school found new life as the home of the Good News Academy and Good News Fellowship, an evangelical church¹¹. Later it was home to Living Water Worship Center. Unfortunately, the building was clearly abandoned by the first time I passed it in 2020. Its doors were boarded, windows were shattered, and an air of neglect had settled over the property. Fortunately, an organization called Indy Freedom Group, LLC bought the building in 2023. Since then, it appears as though its new owner has taken significant steps to stabilize and preserve the historic structure.

Sources Cited
1 Harden, S. (1874). History of Madison County, Indiana, from 1820 to 1874. book. Markleville, IN.
2 Madison County Office of Information & GIS Services. (2021). Parcel ID: 48-12-07-202-002.000-003. 
3 Enrollment ant Lindbergh School Large (1930, March 27). The Anderson Daily Bulletin. p. 6.
4 Larson, K. (1977, May 15). Sixth Graders Honor Lindbergh. The Anderson Herald. p. 12.
5 Bailey, J. (2011, January 29). Lindberg Road station may have been first quick-stop. The Herald Bulletin. Web. Retrieved October 14, 2021.
6 Building Work Is Over One Million (1961, June 6). The Anderson Daily Bulletin. p. 1. 
7 County School Projects Will Be Completed (1961, December 14). The Anderson Daily Bulletin. p. 1. 
8 McColley, S. (1982, May 21). Riley School says ‘good-bye’. The Anderson Daily Bulletin. p. 1. 
9 Lindberg School still talking about class record (1981, December 23). The Anderson Herald. p. 1.
10 Hartsfield, K. W. (1983, May 17). ACS building sale period extended. The Anderson Daily Bulletin. p. 5.
11 Good News Fellowship, Inc. (1985, September 8). The Anderson Herald. p. 2.